Steering Gear INTERMEDIATE SHAFT >>> R & R . . .

.....Hey all ; looking into helping out a neighbor with this repair problem before commencing to "Dive-into" it .....
>>>>> 1990 Ford Ranger XLT Pickup, ShortBox, 2.3L eng., 4x4, 4spd w/OD, <<<<<
........as for what the title of this thread is stating is the job i have; trying to see if it is possible/feasible to just drop the steering gear box down a bit, then up bolt/loose the lower_flex joint and the upper_u-joint of the Intermediate Shaft, then just drop the whole assembly out and reinstall a Newer & tight_ assembly ......... for this is where i have found all the play/slop of in the steering wheel ! ! ! I can move the wheel back & forth upon driving down the road 1.5 to 2 inch's BEFORE the tires/gearbox even moves ! ! ! WAY...tooooo....much slop/play for driving Safely ! ! ! ! ......After troubleshooting & all, front end all snug & tight until you get up past the Gear Box / ...just past the Flex_Joint.....there is like a connection point of the two shaft's; and this is where i can see the free movement from the upper shaft, while moving the steering wheel back & forth of the play/slop.................like i have stated here earlier; thinking of just dropping the Gear Box a bit, just enough to take out this Intermediate Shaft Assembly; ..... But other's have stated to pull up/out the Steering Column as per say "text book" work, ( aka. AutoZone, etc...)..........just would like some input from other's out there that have done this and could suggest/comment for Help, .......
.......thnx in advance.......


mr. Charles


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I had to replace mine a few years ago, and I did not loosen the gearbox or pull the column. :scratch:

Does yours look like this?

.....yes looks almost like for your picture is showing; Is your shaft for showing like a two piece just above the Flex_joint from the Gear Box end??? ....for the one i am seeing for here just doesn't have that wrinkle_boot for what is showing upon your's, there, as well as the end for whick goes towards the Firewall has a "U_joint" type coupling............other than that it look's pretty much the same of.........thank's for the reply back for stating you do NOT half to remove steering column NOR half to drop the Gear Box ! ! ! ...[ whew ]......So....basically, just loosen/remove the pinch_bolt's from both end's on the clamp/bracket's, then move up or down accordingly to get enough room to remove, correct???.......again, thx, RangerX . . . .

mr. Charles


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mr. Charles said:

.....yes looks almost like for your picture is showing; Is your shaft for showing like a two piece just above the Flex_joint from the Gear Box end??? ....for the one i am seeing for here just doesn't have that wrinkle_boot for what is showing upon your's, there, as well as the end for whick goes towards the Firewall has a "U_joint" type coupling............other than that it look's pretty much the same of.........thank's for the reply back for stating you do NOT half to remove steering column NOR half to drop the Gear Box ! ! ! ...[ whew ]......So....basically, just loosen/remove the pinch_bolt's from both end's on the clamp/bracket's, then move up or down accordingly to get enough room to remove, correct???.......again, thx, RangerX . . . .

mr. Charles


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Click to expand...

I am totally new at this, but that's what the one in my 92 looked like. You have power steering, right?

In regard to your question, yes, you can remove just the shaft, or just the gearbox. I will state that yesterday the gearbox got bound on the way out, so I pulled the shaft as well to make it easier (1 extra bolt).

pulling the shaft from your Ranger is SIMPLE, 1 pich bolt near brake booster, 1 pinch bolt at the steering box

If your rubber rag joint is where the play is coming from you can get a new replacement assembly in the HELP! section at your local auto parts store (thanks Colin!)

I am in the process of building a custom steering shaft for my 88 BII, I am getting rid of the rag joint

Even when assembled, the intermediate shaft is two pieces. In other words, if you undo the pinch bolt and the other bolt and take it out you can pull it apart just by pulling. Bascially its a smaller inner shaft that goes into a bigger shaft..

It sounds like your saying you see the sloppyness where the little shaft goes into the big shaft (kinda like a slip joint).. If so, We just fixed that recently on our '92 explorer and on an 88 f-150 (did the f-150 first)..

There is a plastic shim type thing on the inner shaft that is supposed to help keep that joint tight (slip joint). The plastic goes bad over time.. We fixed it with a "fine adjustment tool". We used a sledge (3 lbs) to flatten/bend the bigger tube (make it smaller) so the inner tube would fit tight. We didn't just squish it in one spot. We made it flatter for a few inches. We then put anti sieze on the inner tube and put it back in the outer tube. Now the steering is night and day better..

The f-150 has been fixed like that all summer and we just did the X a few months ago.. so far no ill affects other than having to learn how to drive without having 2" of slop in the steering wheel.


~Mark

Hi,

I know this is an old thread...but I'm having the same problem described by Mark with my 91. That is the slip joint is loose. Rather than beating the tube to conform to the shaft, is it possible to purchase the plastic shims? I can't seem to find them on the napa or o'rielly websites.

treborhi said:

Hi,

I know this is an old thread...but I'm having the same problem described by Mark with my 91. That is the slip joint is loose. Rather than beating the tube to conform to the shaft, is it possible to purchase the plastic shims? I can't seem to find them on the napa or o'rielly websites.

Click to expand...

Unfortunately, no. That said, I am sure there's gotta be something comparable that can be used.

New here

Hey everybody can't wait to gather all your knowledge to have to offer on here and get my 94 Ranger back in 100% operating order.

OEM Steering Colum Lower Bearing Retainer Bushing Part For sale on Ebay

mechroneal said:

Unfortunately, no. That said, I am sure there's gotta be something comparable that can be used.

Click to expand...

I have found this plastic bushing piece you all are looking for a replacement for on eBay and have just received it yesterday and can't be more
Happy with it. It is identical to original part with the 3 small 1/4 bolt holes that line up perfectly. Will be installing it as soon as I get my new upgraded intermediate shaft. If you guys are looking to get this plastic bushing with the 3 1/4 bolts that hold it in, below I have attached the link to the eBay seller I got it from. Shipped same day and received it in 3 days and like I said its just as good if not better than original part. Hope this helps anyone in need of this plastic bushing

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=281559532694

..:scratch:..I'm curious..

..If you haven't installed it, How do you know it is all you said or if it even fits like OEM?